Virgin of Smallpox
Pastel and varnish on birch panel
24 x 48 in.

The appearance of the "Virgin of Guadeloupe" earmarks the complete conquest of the Aztecs . Politically the Aztecs had been defeated but many still worshipped the old gods and goddesses. It was then that an apparition of the Virgin Mary appeared three times before a peasant and some priests. The priests asked her to perform a miracle - produce a rose that could only be found in Spain. When she did, it turned the Aztecs away from their old gods and Christianity took a firm hold. That's sort of how the story goes, until you discover that between 1521 and 1525, 2.5 million Aztecs died from Smallpox (the rose), brought over by the Spanish. After that plague there probably weren't too many Aztecs left to convert. Of course, this cruel joke doesn't deter anyone from putting a decal of her on their lowered Monte Carlo.